Here's a place where I can post my thoughts on new papers, provide updates on my projects, and post info that will eventually be on my website The Theropod Database - http://theropoddatabase.com/ . It will center on theropods, but may delve into other topics as well such as phylogenetics.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Utahraptor ostrommaysorum

One of the few old taxa I have yet to post an entry on in The Theropod Database. A big update will be coming to that site soon, btw. All the new taxa that have been described, new tetanurine phylogeny, the first installments of my analyses of prior cladistic analyses, and more.

Comments- The name Utahraptor was first used in a press release from Kirkland and Dinamation International Society (Olshevsky, 2000) and subsequently published in several articles in July 1992 (e.g. Browne, 1992). Its species name was originally going to be U. spielbergi, but Steven Spielberg's lawyers apparently objected (Bakker pers. comm. to Tegowski, 1996). That name has only been published in a children's magazine and merchandise, which of course lacked a proper description. Once the taxon was properly published, Kirkland et al. (1993) spelled the species name ostrommaysi, but this was emmended by Olshevsky to ostrommaysorum as it honors both Ostrom and Mays. The name Utahraptor "oweni" has also appeared online in various places but is probably a mistake for Valdoraptor oweni.

The type material was discovered in 1975 (BYU material) and 1991-1992 (CEU material), but only described in 1993. The other CEU type material may belong to the same individual as the holotype. A supposed lacrimal (CEU 184v.83) was also a paratype, but was later found to be a postorbital from the ankylosaur Gastonia (Britt et al., 2001). Britt et al. also state a previously identified surangular is actually a long bone fragment, but no surangular was identified in the original description. They determined that the supposed manual unguals BYU 9438, BYU 13068 and CEU 184v.294 are actually pedal unguals, which was confirmed by Senter (2007a).

New material was announced by Britt et al. (2001) in an abstract, but has yet to be described in detail. This consists of one individual from the Yellow Cat (=Gaston) Quarry (CEU coll.) and at least eight from the Dalton Well Quarry (70 elements in the BYU coll.). Anatomical information on these specimens can be gleaned from the matrices of Senter (2007b) and Longrich and Currie (2009). Of particular interest are caudal vertebrae about twice as long as those belonging to a specimen with a 565 mm long femur. If this turns out to be correct and not due to misidentification or unusual proportions, it could indicate individuals over ten meters long.

References- Browne, 1992. A creature to make T. rex tremble. The New York Times. July 21st.